This person does not like his birth name; if you call him by it, he will either correct you or ignore you. This could be for a number of reasons. He might feel that you are assuming too much familiarity with him. He might find his real name embarrassing (though his alias is not always much better). He could want to [[MeaningfulRename reinvent himself]]. Or it might be that no one calls him by that name besides his parents.

Unfortunately for him, it does not always stick; someone will always call him by his old name, much to his chagrin. This person is not [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname only known by his nickname]], despite his best efforts. The person who calls him by his real name might be trying to mock him or threaten him, or perhaps is unaware that he feels this way.

The name comes from the fact that the [[ProfessionalWrestling professional wrestlers]] Wrestling/TripleH (Paul Levesque) and Wrestling/TheBigShow (Paul Wight) both have told fans who refer to them by their birth names that since all their friends and even their wives refer to them by their ring names, as far as they are concerned, those are their real names. This trope is hardly limited to people named Paul, however. Wrestling/{{Raven}} (Scott Levy) is well known for his insistence on being called Raven by ''everyone''. As noted in one of his many shoot interviews, the only people who can call him Scotty are those who first knew him as Scotty the Body.

Could be related to EmbarrassingFirstName, but that is more about an annoyance. This one is more prideful and dramatic. For obvious reasons, this is very common with {{transsexual}} characters.

Some entertainers invert this trope when they want to put their personas behind them (often because their work has become an OldShame to them), refusing to answer to their {{Stage Name}}s.

May also be related to ThatManIsDead and BecomingTheMask. Compare AccidentalMisnaming, InsistentTerminology, TheyCallMeMisterTibbs. Can be a form of a BerserkButton.

Also compare EmbarrassingNickname - someone dubbed him something insulting, and it stuck like a venereal disease. IKnowYourTrueName is like this but with magical ramifications though the effects can be equally powerful.

----!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]* Happens in ''Manga/SoulEater'' when the Little Demon tried to call the title character by his given name, Soul Evans. --> '''Soul:''' You know I don't go by that name anymore, Little Demon. * The main character of ''VisualNovel/SteinsGate'' prefers Hououin Kyouma to Okabe Rintarou.* In ''Manga/PrincessResurrection'', the real name of Hime is Liliane, but she doesn't like to be called that. Two of her brothers, Emil and Severin, call her that, however. The latter did it under dramatic circumstances -- a duel between him and Hime where we learn the background of the name:-->'''Severin:''' Don't be so cold, Liliane! It's a good name. I gave you the name of the cat I used to own.\\'''Hime (Liliane):''' The cat you were rough with and killed. Severin!* Annie from ''Anime/CowboyBebop''; her full first name is Anastasia but she claims that only two people have the right to call her by that name -- Spike, apparently, is not one of them, at least not since he "died".* In ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima'', Albireo Imma adopted the name "Ku:Nel Sanders" for the Mahora Budokai, and liked it so much that every appearance of his afterwards, he refused to reply to his real name. (In Japanese, "Ku-neru" is a combination verb for "eat" and "sleep," plus the added "Sanders" and every time his name is said in its entirety you see the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curse_of_the_Colonel KFC Guy...]])** Then there's Fate Averruncus, who apparently loathes his real name: "[[spoiler:Tertium]]".* Gai Daigoji ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' very much dislikes being addressed by his real name "Jiro Yamada" because he's thinks it's too boring.-->'''Gai''': Jiro Yamada is just the boring old name my mother gave me. Gai Daigoji is the name that belongs to my soul!!!* Son Goku of ''Manga/DragonBall'' will always insist that his name is not Kakarot. While Kakarot is indeed his birth name, he was unaware of his Saiyan heritage until his mid 20s, so...** He does eventually accept Vegeta calling him this, probably because he knows Vegeta is too stubborn to stop if asked. Indeed, Vegeta makes something of a point of always calling him "Kakarot", as he feels that Goku should be proud of his Saiyan heritage. If Vegeta refers to him by his Earth name, it's a sign that he's NotHimself.* Yusaku Godai of ''Manga/MaisonIkkoku'' is only ever called by his first name by his parents and his grandmother in the original Japanese (some translations change this). The only time someone else used his first name, it was schoolgirl stalker, Ibuki Yagami (when he insisted she stop calling him Godai-sensei, since he wasn't her teacher any more, she says, "I understand, Yusaku-san.") Poor guy looked like it gave him hives.* Played straight and inverted in ''Anime/TekkamanBlade''. At the beginning of the series, Blade claims to have forgotten his name, which leads to Noal nicknaming him D-Boy. About 20 episodes later, when the crew finds out his given name (Aiba Takaya), he insists that his name is D-boy (For about half an episode anyway before spilling the beans.) It becomes an inversion toward the end of the series when he [[spoiler: "forgets that the Space Knights have nicknamed him "D-boy" and insists that they call him his given name"]] Played straight again when after defeating his brother, he sheds his birthname and nickname, claiming that he is Tekkaman Blade.-->'''"D-boy and Aiba Takaya are dead. I am Tekkaman Blade!"'''* Re[[spoiler:i]]na from ''VisualNovel/HigurashiNoNakuKoroNi''.* Zera, the ''Manga/LitchiHikariClub'''s self-proclaimed "Emperor of Ruin", becomes rather irate when addressed as Tsunegawa, his family name.** ''"Is my blood Tsunegawa? No. Is my flesh Tsunegawa? No. Tsunegawa is vague and intangible. According to the Hikari Club, I am designated as Zera."''* Papillion Mask from ''Manga/BusouRenkin'' proclaimed that the only person allowed to call him by his real name (Kousaku) is the protagonist Kazuki.* Natsuno Yuuki from ''Manga/{{Shiki}}'' dislikes being called by his first name. He gives up trying to correct people after a certain point.* Averted in ''Manga/DeathNote'' where VillainProtagonist Light spends much of his time seeking the real names and faces of his enemies to be plugged into the titular ArtifactOfDeath. Unfortunately for him, all of them seem to be OnlyKnownByTheirNickname and never have this problem.* ''Anime/SoltyRei'' "My Name isn't "[[spoiler:Dike]]" It's Solty Revant!* Gou from ''Anime/{{Free}}'' does not want people to be called by her first name (due to being [[GenderBlenderName a boy's name]]) and prefers to be called Kou, as it sounds more feminine. Apparently, she has taken this trope as her CatchPhrase.* ''Manga/GokukokuNoBrynhildr'': When Ryouta first meets Mako, the latter tells him not to call her by her codename "Valkyria".[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]* Rorschach from ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', a.k.a. Walter Kovacs: "You keep calling me Walter. I don't like you." His therapist eventually starts writing "Rorschach" in his notes, a sign that his patient is getting to him.* ''Franchise/ArchieComics'': "Jughead" Jones would prefer that you just call him "Jughead" and not "Forsythe".* Inverted in ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'', with Mark's friend William who doesn't want to be called by any nickname, but only by his full name, and has problems getting this done.* ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'':** Kal-El would prefer Superman or Clark, thank you. Interesting variation in that sometimes he will call ''himself'' Kal-El and it is never, ever a good thing -- it signifies that he is turning his back on his humanity. [[BewareTheSuperman That's bad]]. Subverted in that his fellow superheroes often avoid calling him [[SecretIdentity Clark]], so may actually call him "Kal" to call him something like a normal name. Franchise/WonderWoman and ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} are more likely to do this.** Similarly, Clark and Comicbook/LoisLane' adopted Kryptonian son, Chris Kent, tells his [[ArchnemesisDad evil]] and [[AbusiveParent abusive]] birth parents not to call him by his Kryptionian name, Lor-[[spoiler:Zod]].** Inverted when Superman and Myx had a RoleReversal and Myx had to get Superman to say his name backwards. "Namrepus" didn't work but "Le-Lak" did. * ''ComicBook/IncredibleHulk'':** Calling The Hulk "Bruce" is a [[BerserkButton good way to end up on the receiving end of the worst beat down of your life.]] Justified, though, as they really are separate personalities inhabiting the same body. And they do not like each other.** Same goes for his Archfoe The Leader. He hates it when people refer to him by Samuel Sterns.* Wanna piss of minor ''Franchise/SpiderMan'' villain/[[ComicBook/FantasticFour Frightful Four member]] The Trapster? Just refer to his past as the laughably named "Paste-Pot Pete", and see what happens.* The [=Fox McCloud=] of the ''Magazine/NintendoPower'' ''VideoGame/StarFox'' comic does NOT like being called "Junior."* Cassidy the vampire from ''ComicBook/{{Preacher}}'' really doesn't like his first name (Proinsias), and hasn't used it since 1916. He accidentally lets slip of it to Jesse, who ends up using it later to insult him [[spoiler:after the two of them have a fall-out]].* Hilariously justified in ''ComicBook/LesLegendaires'' with Shaki; his real name, [[spoiler:Little Cat Drinking his Bowl of Milk]], is so ridiculous you can easily understand why he doesn't like it.* Many {{Franchise/Batman}} villains dislike being called by their real names, one example being Professor Crane in ''ComicBook/TheBatmanAdventures'' insisting his name is "Scarecrow".* Played for all it's [[TearJerker TearJerking]] worth at the end of ''ComicBook/TheSandman'''s "A Game of You". Wanda's family simply ''refuses'' to call her anything but "Alvin", since as far as they're concerned Alvin is male. Period. The TearJerker element comes into play [[spoiler:because she isn't around to defend herself anymore. TRY not to cry when Wanda's aunt proudly states 'Alvin' looks so nice with 'his' hair cut, and Barbie saying she was so proud of her hair...]]* Envy Admas from ''ComicBook/ScottPilgrim'' really hates being called Nat or Natalie.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Strips]]* ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'': Jon Arbuckle's brother hates being called "Doc Boy". Unfortunately, their Dad likes to call them and their mother "Jon Boy", "Mom Boy" and "Doc Boy".* Averted in ''ComicStrip/USAcres''. Roy hates when Lanolin calls him "Bird" instead of calling him by name. [[http://garfield.com/us-acres/2004-07-24 In this strip]], in response to Roy asking her to call him by name, she called him "Ray". He was upset.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]* In ''Fanfic/OhGodNotAgain'', only three people are allowed to call Tonks by her birth name [[EmbarrassingFirstName Nymphadora]]. Two of them are Charlie and Cedric because she lost a bet to each of them (and doesn't make such bets anymore, no matter how often Harry asks). [[LoveInterest Remus]] can call her that as well, [[ObliviousToLove though the significance of it escapes him at first]].* Dr. Frank Brainstorm of ''Fanfic/CalvinAndHobbesTheSeries'' ''really'' does not like people to refer to him by his first name. Unfortunately, most everyone does just that, and [[OnceAnEpisode every time he shows up]] one can expect him to shout "IT'S DOCTOR BRAINSTORM!" at least twice. [[BetterThanABareBulb Like everything else in the fic]], this is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]:--> '''Dr. Brainstorm: DOCTOR BRAINSTORM!''' WHY CAN'T YOU PEOPLE CALL ME THAT?\\'''Calvin:''' Well, where's the humor in that?* The possessed {{Ridiculously Human Robot|s}} Kiehl in ''Fanfic/WarriorsOfTheWorld'' absolutely dislikes having people refer to him as Kiehl D-01. This is because he believes he's human enough to consider himself the son of his creator (the similarly-named Kiel Hyre) and so prefers to feel human. Unfortunately people tend to forget that, and Doppelganger doesn't help matters by [[MaliciousMisnaming maliciously misnaming]] the poor robot every time.* Fanfic Author MeowthRocket a.k.a. Meowth's Toon Dragon has this in a downplayed form. He's not that uneasy about people he knows and even stranger calling him by his real first name (at times)[[note]]His birth name is Joshua[[/note]] But he's very secretive on what his last name is, not as much out of privacy but more out of embarrassment. People have asked him if the name in his email address is his full name and he's flat-out refused to answer, only telling his closest friends his full name. An old Website/FanFictionDotNet profile supposedly has his full name, but he's refused to tell if that's genuine or if it's an alias.* Similar to the previous example, FanFic writer [[http://www.fanfiction.net/~rcmero rcmero]] usually prefers to be known by his username, though he has provided his real name (well, the English version, anyway)[[note]]It's John, by the way. [[NamesTheSame Don't confuse him with]] [[WebVideo/JonTron that Jon.]] [[LetsPlay/ProtonJon Or that Jon]], for that matter.[[/note]] and usually is not upset about people using it (he himself has used it at the end of [[http://youtu.be/QBoDem_zcC4 one of his videos]]). However, his actual ''real name'' has very rarely been released to the internet, and he ''absolutely'' refuses to use it. Not necessarily because he hates it, however, but because it would be hard for other people to say it due to him being foreign--can you pronounce a name with a tilde in it?* In ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5733297/9 A Time for Changeling]]'' Mafalda Prewett greatly preferred her nickname, Jinx.* In the HungerGames fanfic ''Fanfic/SomeSemblanceOfMeaning'', after [[spoiler: being traumatized by Vale's death and his own subsequent "victory"]], Obsidian lashes out at his caretakers who call him by his given name, instead telling them to call him Sid.* In ''[[Fanfic/ResonanceDays Resonance Days]]'', witches are [[MeaningfulRename reborn with a new name]] and insist on being referred to by that name. Since they lose their memories upon becoming witches, the name is the alpha and omega of their identity, and being called by another name (even the name they held before their transformation) feels like a personal affront. This is of no small source of consternation for [[spoiler: Kyouko, who finds Oktavia's refusal to answer to 'Sayaka' to be distressing]].* In ''FanFic/MegaManDefenderOfTheHumanRace'', [=ProtoMan=] hates being called by his birth name, Blues.* ''Fanfic/MirrorsImage'': Chrysalis gets angry when Princess Celestia calls her Starlight, [[spoiler:her name when she was Celestia's pupil a thousand years ago, mainly because she believes Celestia abandoned her. It doesn't help that Celestia was BrainwashedAndCrazy the last time she tried to contact her.]]* In ''Fanfic/BlythesLittleProblem'' does Blythe Baxter turn into a cat and then gets adopted by her crush Josh Sharp, who names her [[MeaningfulRename Dina]]. After a while she starts asking her friends from the Littlest Pet Shop to start calling her by that name.* In ''FanFic/{{Symbiosis}}'', Elle gets very upset when her grandmother calls her by her birth name [[spoiler: Jessiebell]], feeling that her grandmother has no regard for her change in identity [[spoiler: after her childhood friend and [[ArrangedMarriage fiancee]] James died.]][[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]* In ''Film/TheWrestler'', Randy "The Ram" Robinson gets rather upset when the name badge he's given at his day job has his given name, Robin, and not his ring name, which he usually uses.* In ''Film/ResidentEvilExtinction'', a character is called "K-Mart" by the band of people who found her abandoned in a K-Mart because she does not like her given name.* Agent Smith of ''Film/TheMatrix'' coolly tells our hero "Goodbye, Mr. Anderson" as he holds our hero in a deadlock, in front of an arriving express train. As his ultimate gesture of rejecting his past as a slave, Thomas Anderson proudly shouts "My name is Neo!!" and proceeds to kick the evil programme's ass. Smith keeps calling him "Mr. Anderson" right up until the end. When he finally calls him "Neo", it's significant (and probably an intentional call back to the example from the first movie).* ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade'':** Indy hates being called "Junior" by his father. This is both because he hates the name and he doesn't want anyone to realize his birth name is actually Henry Jones, Jr. It's not until the end that his father uses his preferred nickname to show that he's really serious.--->'''Henry Jones, Sr.:''' We named the dog "Indiana."\\'''Marcus Brody:''' May we go home, please?\\'''Sallah:''' Dog? You are named after the dog?! (''laughs'')\\'''Henry Jones, Jr.:''' I've got a lot of fond memories of that dog...** The comments about a dog are a play on the fact that George Lucas named Indiana Jones for his dog, an Alaskan malamute that was also the inspiration of Chewbacca due to his size and the fact that he would sit upright in the passenger seat like a copilot. ** Though by the time of ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull'', he's gotten used to being called Henry by his friends and peers.* "Snake" Plissken in ''Film/EscapeFromNewYork'' insists on being called "Snake." "Brain" also hates being called Harold, though Snake does it anyway.* Hershe Las Palmas hates being called "Carjack" Malone in ''Film/EscapeFromLA''.* ''Film/TheBigLebowski'': "Look, let me explain something to you. I'm not Mr. Lebowski. You're Mr. Lebowski. I'm the Dude. So that's what you call me. That or His Dudeness... Duder... or El Duderino, if, you know, you're not into the whole brevity thing."* ''TheRightStuff''.--> '''Life Magazine publisher Henry Luce:''' Now, I want them all to meet my people who will write their true stories, Naturally these stories will appear in Life magazine under their own bylines: For example, "by Betty Grissom", or "by Virgil I. Grissom", or...\\'''Gus Grissom:''' Gus!\\'''Henry Luce:''' What was that?\\'''Gus Grissom:''' Gus. Nobody calls me by... that ''other'' name.\\'''Henry Luce:''' Gus? An astronaut named "Gus"? What's your middle name?\\'''Gus Grissom:''' Ivan.\\'''Henry Luce:''' Ivan... ahem... well. Maybe Gus isn't so bad. Might be something there... All right, all right. You can be Gus.* In ''Film/MysteryMen'', Mr. Furious's name is Roy. He finally admits it to keep his new girlfriend from writing him off.* The protagonist in ''BoogieNights'' asks to be called his StageName, ''Dirk Diggler'', off the set.* Spoofed in ''YouDontMessWithTheZohan'' with The Phantom, born Fatush.* In the fake rockumentary ''Hard Core Logo'', the singer is Joe Dick (not Joe Mulgrew), the lead guitarist is Billy Tallent (not Bill Boise), and the drummer is Pipefitter (who may have forgotten his original name). The other member is John Oxenberger, who could never find a good nickname. [[spoiler: In the credits, it is revealed that with his new band, John is known as "The Ox".]]* ''Film/{{Stripes}}'': One of the soldiers introduces himself as nicknamed "Psycho". "If you call me Francis, I'll kill you." [[DrillSergeantNasty Sgt. Hulka]] responds by telling him to "Lighten up, Francis."* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Darth Vader initially plays this trope straight in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. When Luke addresses him as "Anakin", he responds, [[ThatManIsDead "That name no longer has any meaning for me."]]* In ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'', when an official calls her Raven, Mystique responds: "I don't answer to my slave name."** This gets a call-back in ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'', when a younger Mystique is rescuing several of her fellow mutants (and former teammate Havok). When Havok calls her Raven, she declares, "that's not my name."* One of the bullies in ''HocusPocus'', Ice, hates being called "Ernie." This is presented as a fairly pathetic effort to seem cooler.* In ''Film/BadEducation'', Ignacio insists that Enrique call him "Ángel", his stage name. [[spoiler:Although, Ignacio isn't his real name in the first place, since Ignacio is his dead brother's name.]]* ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'': Officer John Blake is encouraged to use his given name at the end of the film: [[spoiler:Robin]].* ''Film/PacificRim'':** {{Inverted|Trope}} with Newt: "Only my mother calls me 'Doctor.'"** Played straight where Chuck calls his father "Old Man", much to Herc's annoyance.* Perhaps unsurprisingly, Gaylord Focker in ''Film/MeetTheParents'' prefers to be called Greg Focker. However, only his parents call him that. In fact, his father frequently shortens his name to "Gay".* Karen from ''Film/Jungle2Jungle''. In a fit of rebelliousness, she tells her dad that her name isn't "Karen" anymore. It's "Oo-Koo-May," the tribal name Mimi-Siku gave her.* ''TheAdventuresOfPriscillaQueenOfTheDesert'': Transgender character Bernadette reacts violently when Adam (who she never got on well with anyway) refers to her by her (male) birth name. [[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]* An inversion in Creator/NeilGaiman's ''Literature/AnansiBoys'': Fat Charlie wishes people would use his birth name.** But played straight in ''Literature/GoodOmens''. Calling Pippin Galadriel Moonchild anything but Pepper is a [[BerserkButton spectacularly bad idea]].* ''Literature/HarryPotter'' has a few examples:** Tonks, [[EmbarrassingFirstName first name Nymphadora]].*** A fan once asked Creator/JKRowling why she didn't just use her middle name. [[WordOfGod Apparently]], [[EmbarrassingMiddleName it's Vulpecula]].** Voldemort counts too. Dumbledore [[spoiler: (and later Harry too)]] continues calling him by his real name of Tom Riddle to his face, though.** Ginevra "Ginny" Weasley's full first name isn't even revealed in the books until Auntie Muriel is heard using it in the last book[[note]]At least in-story. J.K. Rowling had revealed Ginny's full name years prior, to counter rampant {{Fanon}} that "Ginny" was short for "Virginia" rather than "Ginevra," which is the Italian variant of Guenever and so goes nicely with "Arthur" and "Percival."[[/note]].* In ''Literature/TheBabySittersClub'', Stacey is not fond of being called Anastasia. Additionally, King, one of Logan's football teammates does NOT like it when people call him by his given name, Clarence.* In Bujold's ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'', Clement Koudelka and Ludmilla Droushnakovi prefer to be called Kou and Drou.** Bujold's other series, ''Literature/{{Chalion}}'', has Lupe "Caz" Cazaril. His love interest thinks that Lupe is a nice name, but he tells her that as a child, his old brothers drove him crazy by pretending to howl like wolves.* [[strike:Ruth]] ''Nancy'' Blackett of ''SwallowsAndAmazons''. She refuses to be called Ruth because she's an Amazon, and they're [[IncrediblyLamePun ruthless]].* Singe in the ''DragonBelow'' trilogy flinches and corrects them every time someone mentions his family name.* [[MagnificentBastard Senna Wales]] in ''{{Everworld}}''. Senna isn't her real name, though this isn't revealed to the reader until ''[[VillainEpisode Inside the Illusion]],'' the ninth book in the twelve-volume series. (Her real name is Senda, [[MeaningfulName which means "Pathway."]]) During the "family reunion", Senna's mother calls her by her birth name, provoking Senna to politely correct her. Later in the conversation, she does it again, and Senna explodes in anger and ''screams'' at her mother not to call her that.* Literature/AgentPendergast demands to be called by his last name only, or Special Agent, depending on the situation. [[spoiler:His wife preferred her first.]]-->'''Pendergast:''' I'd rather you didn't "sir" me, Jason. The name's Pendergast. [[spoiler:And this is my wife, Helen. She prefers to be called by her first name, I by my last."]]* Kit Kittredge from the ''AmericanGirl'' series prefers to be called as such rather than by her birth name Margaret Mildred, as she finds the latter "flouncy" for a {{tomboy}} like her.** She doesn't seem to mind her Aunt Millie addressing her by her real name, for some reason.* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', all of the Forsaken got new names when they turned evil and generally get angry (sometimes [[DisproportionateRetribution threatening murder]]) when their birth name is used.** Most notably Lanfear (born Mierin). Ishmael just gets a ThatManIsDead in the prologue of the first book when his birth name is used, and Asmodean voluntarily offers his birth name.* In ''RiversOfLondon'' Tyburn insists on being called [[RichBitch Lady Ty]], leading to a minor CMOA when Peter Grant not only calls her Tyburn and uses a PrecisionFStrike to do so, during a WorldOfCardboardSpeech.* Leslie Thomas' detective Dangerous Davies in ''TheLastDetective''. His actual first name is never revealed.* Inverted in ''Franchise/{{Dune}}''. His name really ''is'' Paul, and he ''likes'' being called Paul, but all the Fremen call him Muad'Dib ... and Usul and Mahdi, while others call him Kwisatz Hadderach. The man has more names than stillsuits. As an act of reserving his identity as an Atreides as well as his acceptance into their culture, he requests to be called Paul-Muad'dib.* In ''[[AnneOfGreenGables Anne of Avonlea]]'', one of Anne's students introduces himself on the first day of school as "Jacob." Only later does Anne learn that he's actually named St. Clair, and his mother is very insistent that Anne call him by that name. Anne and her student soon reach a compromise: she, as his teacher, is allowed to call him St. Clair - but if any of his classmates uses the name, he'll beat them up.* In the book of ''LarkRiseToCandleford'', this is mentioned regarding the Pratt sisters, Pearl (nee Prudence) and Ruby (nee Ruth). In the TV series, a whole episode was devoted to the way Dorcas Lane found this out, and was therefore able to deliver some letters from their father, which she had previously put to one side as undeliverable.* In ''[[Literature/BurgessBedtimeStories The Adventures of Peter Cottontail]]'' by Thornton W. Burgess, Peter Rabbit decides that his name is too lame, and tries to get everyone to call him "Peter Cottontail." He refuses to hear anyone using his old name. Eventually, he is taught a lesson, as various friends try to inform him that [[spoiler:Reddy Fox is behind the bush up ahead]].* In ''EndersGame'', Ender doesn't like to be called Andrew.** Of course, in the sequels, [[spoiler: when the name Ender is right up there with Adolf (except worse)]], he has learned to just go by Andrew rather than draw unwanted attention by insisting on using his old nickname.* In ''[[Literature/ArtemisFowl The Lost Colony]]'', a demon warlord formerly known as N'Zall ('Little Horn' in demon language) now insists on being referred to as 'Leon Abbott', after a character in a human storybook he once read.* In ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'', Bella doesn't like to be called Isabella.* Túrin in Creator/JRRTolkien's ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' and ''Literature/TheChildrenOfHurin'' spent his whole life fruitlessly trying to escape the curse [[{{Satan}} Morgoth]] put on his whole family. He figured avoiding his real name would help, so every time he fled from his ruined life to go live someplace new, he introduced himself only with [[MeaningfulRename some unpleasant nickname]] he'd just made up on the spot, such as Agarwaen son of Úmarth, ("Bloodstained son of Ill-fate") and Turambar ("Master of Doom"). But people kept discovering his real name and outing his secret identity. [[YouCantFightFate Not that hiding his name helped him escape the curse]], or anything...* In the Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse novel ''Literature/DarthPlagueis'' we learn that Palpatine hated his father so much that he dropped his first name and was thereafter known only by his surname. He is strongly implied to have been born Cosinga Palpatine II. Unlike most examples of this trope, however, no one in the Star Wars universe seems to know him as anything other than simply "Palpatine" (or Darth Sidious).* In ''Literature/VenusPrime'', Sparta hates it when Blake calls her Linda. In fairness, she's done a hell of a lot of work establishing her identity as "Ellen Troy".* A inversion in ''Literature/DragonInDistress'': Princess Florinara Tansimasa Qasilava Delagordune insists that ''at all times'' she be called by her full name. Good luck with that.* In Creator/TerryPratchett's ''Literature/{{Dodger}}'', the title character admits his real name ([[spoiler: Pip Stick]]) to a very few people, who respect the fact he hates it and continue to call him Dodger. At the end of the book [[spoiler: he gets knighted as Sir Jack Dodger, and the name Pip Stick is forever banished]].* The title character of ''The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tyler'' frequently refers to "my real name, the one I hated" which is only used by one mildly SadistTeacher, and isn't revealed in the text until the very end. [[spoiler: It's Theodora, which is also the first time in the book we learn Tyke is a girl]].* Despite it being his parents' nickname for him, Literature/{{Fudge}} of Creator/JudyBlume's book series does NOT want to be called by his birth name Farley.* Carr, from ''Literature/FancyApartments'', dislikes his full name; Carolinus.* In ''Literature/VampireAcademy'', Rose does not like being called "Rosemarie" and Lissa does not like to be called "Vasilisa". Rose does not object however when teacher Sonya Karp calls her by her first name. Nor does Lissa when Queen Tatiana Ivashkov insists on calling her by her first name. [[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]* ''Series/SamsonEnGert'': Albert wants to be addressed as ''Alberto'', which sounds more Italian, but Gert always calls him ''Albert'', which is a BerserkButton for him. * In ''{{Smallville}}'', like in the comics, Clark does not like being called Kal-El.* The second season of ''Series/{{WMAC Masters}}'' introduced Tracy Swedom who always insisted on being called by his key symbol Tracer. Since he was a JerkAss, everyone called him Tracy; of course, his name was a SignificantAnagram (Destroy WMAC).* Recurring villain Ari Haswari from ''Series/{{NCIS}}'' responds to "Haswari" (his Arab name), but not "Ari" (his Jewish name).* ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'''s Seven of Nine was born Annika Hansen, but resists being called that.* In ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', Sylar insists on being called by his new nickname, as opposed to his birth name Gabriel, which is part of his discarded, "normal" identity.* In ''Series/TheXFiles'', Agent Mulder prefers ''not'' to be addressed by his given name of Fox, claiming that even his parents call him Mulder, which they don't.* In ''Series/HappyDays'', only Mrs. Cunningham can call the Fonz "Arthur."* Subverted in an episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' when the crew travels back in time and meets Mark Twain, who insists on being called by his real name of Samuel Clemens.* Walt Junior on ''Series/BreakingBad'' went through a period where he only respond to "Flynn". He gave up on this around the same time that Skyler (his mother) kicked Walt, Sr. out for that whole [[TitleDrop breaking bad]] thing. Once he started idealizing his father and resenting his mother, he went back to Walt Jr. In season five, he gets fed up with the way ''both'' parents refuse to tell him what's going on and switches back to Flynn.* Andy from ''Series/{{The Office|US}}'' tries this for about five minutes after returning from anger management with the new name "Drew" as part of a reinvention, but Jim continues to call him Andy to irritate him and he eventually gives up on it.* Rodney [=McKay=] of ''Series/StargateAtlantis'' tried to hide the fact that his first name is actually [[EmbarrassingFirstName Meredith]]...it only got out because of his sister, who persistently calls him by it.** There's one episode where he meets an alternate version of himself known as Rod. [=McKay=] complains that he was never able to get anyone to call him Rod.* In ''Series/StargateSG1'', despite being of the same species as the [[PuppeteerParasite Goa'uld]], their stark philosophical differences and preference for having a symbiotic relationship with their hosts, means that the [[LaResistance Tok'ra]] do '''[[BerserkButton not]]''' take kindly to being referred to by the name of their megalomaniacal brethren.* Adam Klaus in ''Series/JonathanCreek''. The only person who ever uses the name Chester is his sister Kitty, and he really wishes she wouldn't. (Surprisingly, though, no-one else picks up on it to annoy him. Nor do they ask why Kitty's Scottish when he's supposed to be American.)** Because Adam explains in that episode that she's his half sister, they have the same father, Adam's Mother was American, Kitty's was Scottish, Adam was raised in America.* Bubbles, from ''Series/TrailerParkBoys,'' insists that Ricky doesn't refer to his friend, 'Shitty Bill,' by that name, as he finds that nickname offensive. When the next scene cuts in, Bubbles addresses him with a pleasant, 'Can I do the gears, Shitty?'* Adam (born Gracie) Torres from ''Series/{{Degrassi}}'' is a typical example of a transgender person changing their birth name.* Cindy Mackenzie of ''Series/VeronicaMars'' much prefers her nickname, Mac.** Inverted with Cassidy Casablancas, who eventually gets fed up with people calling him "Beaver".* In an episode of ''Series/DoctorWho'', one-year-old baby Alfie prefers the name '''[[AwesomeMcCoolname Stormageddon, Dark Lord of All]]'''. Being a baby, he can't exactly ''tell'' his parents this; the Doctor finds this out because [[{{Omniglot}} he speaks Baby]].** In the classic series, Ace. "That's how I knew [[ChangelingFantasy they couldn't be my real mum and dad]]. My real mum and dad would never have given me a naff name like Dorothy."*** In a couple of the Big Finish audio stories, she even swears off "Ace" for a while, insisting that the Doctor call her "McShane" or Dorothy. However, since both of those instances are times where she's quite pissed off at the Doctor, she goes back to Ace once she gets over it.** The Doctor has spent over 1200 years [[OnlyKnownByHisNickname only going by his nickname]], with only River (and Clara in an negated timeline) thus-far discovering his true name, which has not been revealed to the audience. Why he gave up his name and chose the name "The Doctor" has only been hinted as being because of some terrible secret. Also, "the Doctor" is more than just a name. It's a promise ("never cruel or cowardly; never give up, never give in").* On ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'', Sarah Jane Smith is very clear that she prefers to go by "Sarah Jane". The Doctor gets away with calling her "Sarah," though.* Benjamin "Coach" Wade on ''Series/{{Survivor}}''. "If anyone calls me Benjamin to my face, I'm gonna go nuts."* ''Series/TheWestWing''** Josiah Edward Bartlet, better known as Jed to his best friend and his wife. To everyone else on planet Earth, he's "Mr. President".** Claudia Jean Cregg is universally known as C.J.* ''HomeAndAway''s Brax is not called Darryl. He's Brax. * One season of ''HellsKitchen'' had a contestant named Robert; when Chef Ramsay called him "Bobby" once, he got surprisingly angry. As he later explained in the ConfessionCam (and to Ramsay after the service), Bobby was the name of his father, a cruel man who told Robert that he would never amount to anything, making it obvious why the name offended him. After hearing the explanation, Ramsay apologized and promised not to use that name anymore.* ''Series/{{Bones}}''** Angela is like this. She renamed herself because she hated her birth name. We can guess how bad it was by how her dad tried to name Angela's son Staccato Mamba. (The Staccato part did make a middle name, though.)** In the episode "Mayhem On A Cross", members of various metal groups refuse to give either their birth name or another members birth name.* ''Series/{{CSI}}''** Around the Las Vegas Crime Lab, no one calls Supervisor Russell Dienbenkorn, as he tells new old colleague Finn. It's D.B. Russell.** Finn herself is actually Julie -- D.B. is the one person who still calls her Julie, and her writing "Diebenkorn" on the envelope she left him was her way of getting back at him for it. She also objects to "Jules".* On ''Series/MagnumPI'', Rick's best friends know his real name is Orville, but he threatens them if they say it around anyone else.* In ''Series/MyMadFatDiary'', Rae prefers this nickname rather than her full birth name, Rachel.* In ''Series/WalkerTexasRanger'', Francis Gage is usually referred to by his last name, with only his sister calling him by his first name. Although this is typical of male characters usually being called by their last names: Walker, Trivette, etc.* Bishop Brennan from ''Series/FatherTed'' hates it when anyone calls him by his first name, Len. [[Main/ManChild Dougal]], suprisingly enough, consistently does exactly that.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]* There's always the "Boy Named Sue," immortalized in song by Music/JohnnyCash (and others). He ''still'' hates that name...** Cash himself is an example. His parents named him simply J.R. Cash. When the Air Force insisted that he couldn't just use initials, he picked John as a first name.* Paul Daniel Frehley, better known as the former guitarist for Music/{{KISS}} Ace Frehley. He'd been known as Ace since before KISS but they decided to go with Ace because they didn't want [[OneSteveLimit two Pauls]], so now even today everyone calls him Ace, in interviews.* Music/AliceCooper. There is an article about him where the interviewer called him Vincent, and Cooper replied "My mother calls me Vincent." Sorry Alice.** JustifiedTrope. He legally changed his name to Alice Cooper in 1975. This was most likely done to ensure he could still use "Alice Cooper" for his solo project, despite it originally being the name of the band, which had just broken up at that time.* Music/OzzyOsbourne has said that if someone calls him John (his real name) he'll ignore them. His first wife, Thelma, still refers to him by that name.* BobMarley's birth name was Nesta Robert Marley. He was known as Robert or Bob at school. When his mother was helping him emigrate to the US, the immigration officers put his name down as Robert Nesta Marley, thus it became his business name. His mother and family friends always called him Nesta, and it also caught on amongst fans even though he's never been publicly known as it.** PeterTosh never had anyone call him Winston (his real name) nor did he like his full surname McIntosh, because he felt they were relics of British colonialism. He chose the name Peter after St Peter from the Bible.*** Bunny Wailer never uses his real name of Neville, always calling himself Bunny Livingston or Bunny Wailer.* Guitarist {{Buckethead}} didn't even allow Ozzy, the Prince of Fucking Darkness himself, to call him Brian, retorting that only his mother calls him Brian.* Many members of Music/{{Rammstein}}. Paul Landers' birth name is Heiko Paul Hiersche; he first decided to go by his middle name and then took his (now divorced) wife's surname, making an interesting case where you ''should'' call him Paul. Flake Lorenz doesn't like his given name, Christian, and has declared that Flake ''is'' his proper name. Christoph Schneider usually goes by either "Doom" or his last name. And Oliver Riedel just goes by Ollie.* Music/{{Prince}} changed his (legal) name to a symbol as part of a contract dispute with Warner Bros. When people settled on calling him "the artist formerly known as Prince," he decided he didn't like that, and changed it again to "The Artist." When the dust finally cleared, he went back to "Prince," which is his actual first name by birth.* Music/BobDylan sometimes gets annoyed when you call him Robert or Bob Zimmerman. It depends on his mood and how much he likes you. He once wrote a song with an entire stanza of variations on, "You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy..." Apparently UsefulNotes/BarackObama is on the shortlist for people who can call him "Zimmy" to his face.** In his memoir he admitted that when he first changed his name to Bob Dylan it took a while to get used to being called Bob. He'd spent his whole youth answering to "Bobby".* It is highly recommended that you not address Music/LadyGaga as Stefani. [[ShapedLikeItself Lady Gaga is Lady Gaga]]; Stefani sang for Music/NoDoubt.* Yusuf Islam, far better known as (but no longer answering to) "Cat Stevens". Before that, born Steven Georgiou.* {{Lights}}. You can use her last name and call her 'Lights Poxleitner', but whatever you do, you should NOT call her Valerie.* Rock singer Music/MeatLoaf strongly dislikes his birth name, "Marvin". He had his first name legally changed to "Michael" to avoid having to use it at all, has the songs he's written credited to "Meat Loaf Aday", and generally prefers just to be addressed as "Meat".* A good way to prematurely end any interview with electronic music pioneer Wendy Carlos is to [[{{transsexual}} refer to her as Walter]].* Don't call Music/ToriAmos "Myra Ellen" if you want to be her friend. She makes an exception for her family, who calls her Ellen.* FiveIronFrenzy and BraveSaintSaturn's lead singer, Reese Roper's actual name is Michael Reese Roper. But as the lyrics of one of his songs, All the Hype, says: "My name is Reese, don't call me Mike".* "Commander B. Hawkins", the keyboardist and songwriter for Music/TheProtomen, claims in interviews that even his mother calls him "Commander" these days. Given that the Protomen as a whole are [[CloudCuckooLander prone to extreme flights of fancy]], this may or may not actually be true.* Trance DJ-producer Dirk Dierickx, known by the artist names [[IHaveManyNames Push, M.I.K.E., or DJ Mike]], changed his legal name to Mike Dierickx in 2000.* [[Music/ThePolice Sting]] ''hates'' it when you call him Gordon, to the point of simply pretending he was never named Gordon Sumner in the first place.* Former Music/PinkFloyd frontman Syd Barrett, later in life, would refuse to answer to "Syd," his nickname, instead preferring his birth name, "Roger."* EmilieAutumn insists her her legal name is "Emilie Autumn Liddel", despite fans buying merchandise and receiving them from "Emily Fritzges". On her website, the words "Emily" and "Fritzges" are filtered out and discussion of this name is grounds for a banning.* [[Music/PaulMcCartney Paul [=McCartney=]]]'s first name is James, but he'd rather be called by his middle one - possibly because his father is also called James (and Paul gave a son this name as well).* Bono from Music/{{U2}}. Incidentally, his birth name ''is'' Paul (David Hewson). TheOtherWiki states, however, that everyone - even his wife and the other band members - calls him "Bono." Also ironic is that he hated the nickname at first (It's short for "Bono Vox", Latin for "Good Voice"). The Edge, from the same band, was originally named David Howell Evens, but says that now even his close family call him Edge.* Don't call Rogue of The Crüxshadows Virgil or Roger.* His ex-wife Creator/DitaVonTeese has confirmed that no one other than his mother calls Music/MarilynManson "Brian". His friends and bandmates are split as to whether they refer to him as Marilyn or Manson.* Apparently very few people ''including'' her parents normally called MileyCyrus "Destiny Hope Cyrus" since her childhood, with the occasional exception of her grandmother. Billy Ray and his wife took to calling her "Smiley" or "Smiley Miley" (referring to how often she laughed and smiled as a child), eventually shortening it to "Miley". Her name was legally changed to "Miley Ray Cyrus" in 2007 (although her co-writing credits on ''Meet Miley Cyrus'' are credited to "Destiny Hope Cyrus" in the CD jacket).* Fergie is not to be called "Stacey". To seal the deal, she changed her legal name to Fergie Duhamel in August 2013.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]* It is interesting to note that wrestling name conventions stick for a long time. For example, Wrestling/TheUndertaker is ALWAYS Undertaker or 'Taker. Unless, of course, you're Wrestling/RicFlair, who met him during his 'Mean' Mark Callous days. Flair still calls him Mark. It extends on most of the time, though there are exceptions. Wrestling/LanceStorm, for example, refers to [[Wrestling/GregoryHelms Shane Helms as The Hurricane]], even though he met him during the Shane Helms days.* Pro wrestling locker room etiquette demands that new wrestlers must introduce themselves to the older wrestlers, and then call them whatever the older wrestler introduces himself as.* Despite what some smarks think, the names you hear on TV are what they are called in real life. This was spoofed on ''WesternAnimation/CelebrityDeathmatch'' where a demon mocked Wrestling/TheUndertaker by calling him Mark. It was also alluded to during the Wrestling/MinistryOfDarkness angle when Wrestling/VinceMcMahon said that "Mark" had begun to think his gimmick was real.** Averted in a non-Deadman angle with Undertaker in 2002 involving his wife and a woman who claimed to have had an affair with him (and later confessed to being paid off by nemesis Wrestling/PaulHeyman to tell that lie); both women referred to him as "Mark" throughout the storyline.* Averted when Vince had a set collapse on him in the summer of 2008. Despite being an obvious storyline, as he was being helped from the rubble you clearly hear him say "[[WorkedShoot Paul....Paul....I can't feel my legs!]]" referring to HHH.* As Wrestling/{{Sabu}} and Wrestling/RobVanDam can attest, [[Wrestling/EdFarhat The Sheik]] would never break-character, going so far as refusing to answer the phone if someone called an asked to speak to "Ed" (his given name).* Wrestling/{{Layla}} El and Wrestling/KellyKelly poked fun at this in an interview as Layla referred to Kelly as "Barbie" (her real name, believe it or not) and Kelly jokingly corrected her.* Wrestling/{{Edge}} once mentioned in an interview that the reason he didn't like to be called his real name by fans is that the fans only know Edge, the wrestling character. They aren't familiar with Adam Copeland, the person who portrays said character. He has since changed his attitude after retiring from wrestling, preferring his real name when it comes to things not directly involving wrestling, such as his acting career.* Wrestling/CMPunk has said in an interview of his own that, since he's been called "Punk" from his early teens, "Phil Brooks" is not a desired name while in the wrestling business.** Nonetheless, he name dropped "Phil Brooks" in a promo during 2011 with Triple H (who got name dropped as well).* Notable that part-[[TropeNamers Trope Namer]] Wrestling/TheBigShow actually ''did'' wrestle under his real name for a while when he made his WWF debut in 1999, before phasing it out.** Wrestling/TripleH did as well, sort of. In WCW he was ''Jean''-Paul Levesque.* [[InvertedTrope Inverted:]] As he left the WWE full-time in lieu of his movie career, Wrestling/DwayneJohnson began to distance himself from the moniker of "The Rock" to form his movie identity, at the advice of his then-manager, which left a lot of fans feeling miffed at the gesture. It is probably not coincidental that, with superstar movie career firmly established, Johnson fired that manager and hired his ex-wife in his place around the same time he returned into the WWE fold; since his 2011 special appearance run, he has not been averse to being called The Rock outside of the ring, unlike before. However, arch-rivals Wrestling/JohnCena and Wrestling/CMPunk still refer to him as "Dwayne" consistently in a mocking fashion.* And again: in a TV interview not long after leaving WWE Rena Mero said, "I am not Wrestling/{{Sable}}. Sable is a character I played. My name is Rena Mero."* [[Wrestling/UltimateWarrior The Ultimate Warrior]] actually ''legally changed his name'' to "Warrior" (a step up, to be sure, from "James Hellwig"). But this was by many accounts for trademark-related reasons and not personal ones.** The same goes for [[Wrestling/RickRude "Ravishing" Rick Rude]] and Wrestling/{{Chyna}}.*** Wrestling/RickRude's real name was Richard Rood, so that wasn't much of a stretch.* Used during a storyline where Wrestling/EricBischoff was being put on trial to see if he could remain RAW GM. "The Masterpiece" Chris Masters was called in to testify on behalf of Bischoff, but Vince was able to discredit his testimony by proving he committed perjury, as his name isn't really Chris Masters, but Chris Mordetzky. This was quickly forgotten and his real last name was never mentioned on TV again. * In most of his professional life, Wrestling/ChrisJericho goes by his nickname. However, for one night on ''Series/DancingWithTheStars'', he subverted this by being announced by his real name Chris Irvine, as he was honoring his late mother by dancing to her favorite song. [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments Aww]].** Jericho once made an appearance on Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} going by "Chris Irvine" as well.* Andrew Martin, best known as Wrestling/{{Test}}, actually had his middle name changed legally to Test so he could continue to use the Test gimmick (which was owned by WWE). However, Wrestling/StacyKeibler, among others, would at times on WWE TV address him as "Andrew."* Wrestling/WilliamRegal is an interesting case; he finds it rude to be addressed as "Regal" due to English customs; he's typically addressed backstage as Darren (his real name) or "Steve" (his longtime former ring name).* "[[Wrestling/HunterJohnston Delirious]] is not a character, Delirious is who I am!"[[/folder]]

[[folder:Religion and Mythology]]* No, ''do'' call him Paul, don't call ''Saul''.** Acts 13:9 should make it clear that ''Paul'' is his a.k.a.; no passage states that he ''or'' God changed his name. The only thing is that "Saul" doesn't appear past that point.*** "Saul" is his name in Hebrew and "Paul" is his name in Greek. It's just a different translation. (Similar to "Michael" "Miguel" "Mikhail" etc. all being the same.) As his focus shifted from Jews to Gentiles, his name shifted with the language he used to communicate.** Also, many Jews and some Christian denominations believe God does not like to be called 'God', preferring 'The Lord.' And many more Jews will get quite annoyed if you try to guess his real name and call him "Yahweh" or "Jehovah".*** Ironically, this is the exact opposite of Jehovah's Witnesses, who believe God DOES like to be called by name, whether that be "Yahweh" or "Jehovah", and are slightly annoyed by the overabundant use of 'The Lord' and such.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theater]]* In ''Theatre/{{Curtains}}'', after the star is killed the remaining actors do not want to stay with the tour, and they send their [[Creator/ActorsEquity Equity]] Representative forward to argue their case to the producer. The producer responds with "Shut up, Elaine". "The name is Bambi... Mother".[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]* In ''DevilMayCry'', Lady's name is actually Mary, but she says that she "doesn't have a name" because she hates her father. She tells Dante to call her whatever he wants. His response? "Whatever, lady!" And she stuck with it.--> "[[ThatManIsDead Mary died a long time ago]]. My name is Lady."* In the ''KingdomHearts'' games, [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII Squall Leonhart]] stops using his given name [[ThatManIsDead out of shame and guilt]] at [[ShellShockedVeteran not being able to save his world]] from TheHeartless, answering instead to "Leon" and irritably correcting [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Yuffie]] when she calls him "Squall."** In the first game, it was hinted that he would take back his real name once he was able to return to his home. [[RetCon Then the second game just forgot about that.]]* Judge Gabranth from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' feels he no longer has any right to be called by his birth name, [[spoiler:Noah]].* [[VideoGame/PaperMario Lakilester]] wants to be called Spike, but guess how often that happens.* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Bomberman}} Bomberman 64: The Second Attack]]'', Regulus refers to himself as Bulzeeb, seeing himself as a completely different warrior due to his dramatic increase in power since the last game. [[spoiler:He goes back to being called Regulus by the end]].* Princess Sarisa in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' would much rather be called Faris, as she is far more comfortable as a pirate than she is as a princess.* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'': Beat hates being called Daisukenojo Bito. Several of the Reapers do it anyway, much to his chagrin.* [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Tetra]] inverts this trope. She does NOT like to be called [[spoiler:Princess Zelda]].* In ''VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'' [[spoiler:Velvet Velour]]'s real name can be revealed if you play a Malkavian. She doesn't wish to be called [[spoiler:Susan]] however, stating that [[ThatManIsDead that girl is dead]].* It may be easy to guess, but, just like the trope name, the ''Franchise/ProfessorLayton'' series' first BigBad Don Paulo was formerly a simple Paul. He hates being referred to as such.* In ''LANoire'', only Captain Donnelly can call Rusty Galloway by his first name: [[spoiler:Finbarr]].-->'''Rusty:''' I don't care if you were clocked in the head, Cole. You '''don't''' call me [[spoiler:Finbarr]].* In ''VideoGame/InFamous'', Zeke mentions that his full name is Zeke Jedediah Dunbar.-->'''Cole:''' Your middle name is Jedediah?\\'''Zeke:''' Only my mama gets to call me Jedediah.* Magoichi from ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' was originally called [[TheDanza Sayaka]], but [[ThatManIsDead threw it away]] when she [[TakeUpMySword took on the name and title of her predecessor]]. No matter how many times she tells him this, [[ShipTease Motochika still uses her old name]].* Cecilia of ''RuneFactory'' prefers to be called "Ceci". She never really says why.*** A possible reason is that it might be a bit difficult for a child like her to say.** Averted in ''RuneFactory2'' as she says she's trying to stop asking people to call her Ceci.* Bernie Crane in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'' doesn't like to be called by his old name, Florian Cravic.* ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'': According to the Engineer update comic, BLU Engineer prefers to be called [[spoiler: Dell]]. [[spoiler: Mr. Conagher]] is his father.* Even after receiving the codename [[MetalGearSolid3 Big Boss]], Jack insists on being called Naked Snake. [[spoiler:At least until the end of Peace Walker, where he accepted the title.]]* [[SaintsRowTheThird Do not call Killbane "Eddie".]] [[spoiler:He might snap your neck.]]* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'': [[spoiler: Your Character]] does this with certain dialogue options, rejecting [[spoiler: your former identity of Darth Revan. Justified, since you only remember a few flashes of your previous life.]]** In the sequels, it's implied that [[spoiler: Revan doesn't reject their name, so much as being called ''[[ThatManIsDead Darth]]'' Revan]].* Leto from ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'' used to be a slave in the Tevinter empire, earning the nickname "little wolf" ([[spoiler:Fenris]]) from his master. He eventually managed to escape and made it to Kirkwall, going by his nickname; when [[spoiler:his long-lost sister shows up for a warm, loving reunion in which she sells him out to Denarius and he may or may not kill her for it]], he is ''not'' happy about being called his original name.* Thrall/Go'el of ''WorldOfWarcraft'' has a comlicated relationship with this trope. He grew up as a slave under the name Thrall ([[MeaningfulName literally "slave"]]), and even after gaining his freedom decided not to change it, so as to remember where he came from. He later learned his birth name was Go'el, but continued to use the name Thrall while his LoveInterest Aggra calls him by his birth name. Thrall's eventual decision to set aside his office of Warchief, and then his slave name, reflect his CharacterDevelopment in letting go of his bitterness towards the humans' Alliance that enslaved him to embrace his potential as a shaman who protects the entire world, not just the Horde.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]* Anghel Higure is worried that uttering the forbidden name of [[spoiler: Yoshio Akagi]] will unleash horrible evils into the world of ''VisualNovel/HatofulBoyfriend'', and panics every time the heroine tries (she thinks it's a nice name). Anghel [[CloudCuckooLander is kind of insane]].* In ''VisualNovel/MajiDeWatashiNiKoiShinasai'', this is a BerserkButton for Angel.* In ''VisualNovel/SerendipityNextDoor'', the protagonist's upstairs neighbor Keiichi insists on being called "Byron," after [[Creator/LordByron the poet]]. The other residents of the building mostly seem to ignore this preference.* By the time of ''VisualNovel/GrisaiaNoRakuen'' the minor supporting character of Robert Wallson from ''[[VisualNovel/GrisaiaNoMeikyuu Meikyuu]]'' is officially dead and in hiding as Jimmy Okada, a foreigner who married a local restaurant owner's daughter. [[spoiler:She's actually a CIA agent and no more Japanese than he is.]] He won't respond to Robbie when Yumiko tries calling him that at first.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'':** Church might technically be named [[spoiler:Epsilon]], but he much prefers to simply be called Church, as it's what he thinks of himself as. He gets rather upset when he finds out [[spoiler:the Reds and Blues have been calling Wash "Church" while Church was trapped in the memory unit]].** Agent Washington is like this as well; take the following exchange as an example:---> '''[[spoiler:Director]]:''' I realize it has been awhile since we last spoke, [[spoiler: David]]. May I call you [[spoiler: David]]?\\'''Agent Washington:''' No. You cannot. You gave me my new name. The least you could do is use it.* Than from ''WebAnimation/TheMostPopularGirlsInSchool'' gets angry if you call him by his real name, Jonathan Getslinhaumer.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]* Vero, from ''[[Webcomic/M9Girls M9 Girls!]]'', insists on being called Golden by everyone. * From ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Tiffany Susan Pompoms ONLY goes by her middle name... she really, REALLY doesn't like her first name, mostly because it's a bit too "happy" for her image.** That, and [[DisappearedDad her father]] chose her first name.* Larson of ''VenusEnvy'' has good reason for his birth name being a BerserkButton; he's a female-to-male {{Transsexual}} and his original name was "Marie". "DON'T CALL ME THAT! I HATE THAT NAME!"** Zoe, on the other hand, is only mildly annoyed at being called "Alex," especially by her mother, with whom she's fairly close.* In ''DumnestorsHeroes'', the [[DelusionsOfEloquence Dark Lordess]] [[MyNaymeIs Tyfnee]] explains that Tyfnee is her middle name; she never really liked "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Atrocia]]"* Sprite artist Akuma The Hedgehog at [[http://www.mgcomics.com/ The Middle Ground comics]] recently revealed his age, name and picture for charity after '''ten years''' of complete anonymity. He still insists that you call him by his online name, however.* In ''TheSpecialists'', inverted by [[http://thespecialistscomic.com/page-57/ Baron Crossbones]]. Who submits to that ridiculous code name only in propaganda -- his secretary must call him by his real title.* At the end of the ''Webcomic/{{Multiplex}}'' parody of ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', Kurt (who is dressed as Rorschach for the premiere) fills out his incident report about [[http://www.multiplexcomic.com/strip/338 breaking a rude customer's finger]] in character. When his boss admonishes him for it, he quotes the movie.-->'''Neil''': Fill out a ''real'' incident report, Kurt.\\'''Kurt''': You keep calling me Kurt. I don't like you.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]* ''Literature/ShadowOfTheTemplar'''s Jeremy Archer gets annoyed with Simon when the FBI agent jokingly calls him Jeremiah. Turns out Jeremy's birth name was Jeremiah Harbottle, a name he gave up when he gave up his life on the streets and became a high level thief.* ''Roleplay/{{AJCO}}'s'' Eglatine Wynne is far more commonly known by her nickname of Egg. It's partially because she hates her [[EmbarrassingFirstName first name]] ''so'' much she hasn't even ''told'' anyone what it is, and partially because she no longer identifies with the girl who was called Eglatine, only the girl who became Egg during her time in the mob.* Let's Player LetsPlay/RoahmMythril generally uses that instead of his real name. The reason being that he was named after a relative who committed suicide for an outlandishly stupid reason.* Midget Apple from ''WebVideo/TheAnnoyingOrange'' insists his name is "little apple", but he's almost never called that.* Played with and played straight with Stone of the [[Roleplay/GlobalGuardiansPBEMUniverse Global Guardians]] prefers to be called "Stone", to the point that he rarely tells people his first name and refuses to give it to people when asked. After he responded to the question with "Just Stone" one too many times, his teammates began telling other people his first name was "Just". While this annoyed him at first, eventually he started ''intentionally'' telling people that "Just" was his first name. His actual first name is "Wendell".* Done by WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick to punish Maven for annoying her when she's (the Chick) still not awake yet. Maven stops her in the hallway, calling her Lindsay and asking her to hold a toy duck. The Chick throws the duck at her and storms off, saying she hates being called Chick. Maven is understandably confused.* In the ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'', Aqueous gets mad when Phase (in an attempt to be friendly) calls him by his real first name. Aqueous explains: he's a mutant who no longer looks ''human'' and he was named for his uncle... who hates mutants.* Judge Dead from ''Franchise/{{Noob}}'' seems to hate his real name, Théodore, prefering his OnlineAlias to it. A scene from the novels has his boss heavily imply that he considers doing this ridiculous when they are face-to-face in real life. The webseries had him insist on his real name not being used online while something ''much'' more urgent than the proper way to adress him was going on and showed [[spoiler:his father, Tenshirock, using it in late Season 5 episodes]].[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]* ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'': The AlphaBitch of the show hates her first name, Élisabeth, and prefers to be called by her nickname, Sissi.* On an episode of ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'', Numbuh One is transported to a future where he has a son named Shirly who wants to be known as Vego. Nigel tells him to stick with Shirly.* He may have been called 'Astronomonov,' but his parents named him 'Susan.' [[WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory We know him by a different name:]] Mandark.* ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'': RecurringCharacter Charlton Woodchuck. If you call him Baynarts, he'll put your name on his list and make a point to not like you when he's famous.* Matrix from ''WesternAnimation/ReBoot'' is the grown-up form of Enzo Matrix. Just don't call him "Enzo", anymore...** This comes in handy later on when [[spoiler: Mainframe is rebooted, complete with a copy of young Enzo.]]* Frankie from ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'' introduces herself to the main characters with "Whatever the rabbit says is wrong. The name's Frankie, not Frances."* Tails in ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' expresses his dislike for his real name, Miles. Sonic sometimes takes advantage of this by blackmailing him out of a dangerous situation.* In ''TotalDramaAction'', [[CloudCuckoolander Izzy]] does this several times, going from Kaleidoscope to E-Scope to Explosivo. In this case, it indicates that she's kind of insane and possibly possesses multiple personalities.* There was a whole episode devoted to Spinelli's deep hatred of her first name, Ashley, in ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}''.** Although that episode was about how any girl with the first name Ashley has no choice but to join the clique of [[AlphaBitch Alpha Bitches]] the Ashleys. Spinelli kept her first name hidden because she didn't want to be associated with them.* Played with in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' when Bruce Wayne started HearingVoices as a result of Shriek. He later tells Terry that the reason he knew he wasn't going crazy was because the voice kept calling him "Bruce", which is not what [[SecretIdentityIdentity he calls himself]] in his head.* In ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', Babs Bunny despises her whole name Barbara Ann. Buster calls her this twice, once in the show and the other in the straight-to-video film ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventuresHowISpentMyVacation''. Her response: "Don't call me that!"* Frankie Dutweiler, the bully in ''WesternAnimation/WishKid'', would beat up anyone who called him Francis.-->'''Frankie:''' [[PunctuatedForEmphasis NOBODY... CALLS ME...]] ''[[PunctuatedForEmphasis FRANCIS!!!]]''* On ''WesternAnimation/RocketPower'', Twister doesn't like to be called by his real name "Maurice." It embarrasses him...of course, other characters use that fact to their advantage several times in-series.* ''WesternAnimation/StuntDawgs'': Nothing enrages Richard P. Fungus more than being called "Dick".* Several ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' villains claim that ThatManIsDead, but [[PsychoElectro Electro]] gets particularly nuts if people use his original name (Max Dillon). * Michelanne Mazinsky prefers to be called [[WesternAnimation/MikeLuAndOg Mike]].* The title character from ''WesternAnimation/{{Arthur}}'''s little sister Dora Winifred would rather be known by her initials, Arthur sometimes calls her by her full name to infuriate her.* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLifeAndTimesOfJuniperLee'', Steven (a.k.a. the Sandman), insists he ''not'' be called "Steve". [[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Life]]* Pretty much anyone online that is involved in the more... ''inappropriate'' parts of the Internet (or even sufficiently paranoid enough) would much prefer to keep their real name a secret and go by "anonymous", a tripcode, or their screen name. Amongst hacker circles, "dropping dox"[[note]]Revealing a person's personal information[[/note]] is considered one of the worst things you can do to someone, and even [[IKnowYourTrueName revealing their real name is known as "The Powerword"]] and jokingly considered one of the most powerful spells in an internet wizard's arsenal.* Malcolm [[OneLetterName X]] was born Malcolm Little, a name he never took to. He changed his name to Detroit Red as a teenager, and finally to "Malcolm X" upon joining the Nation of Islam. Even after breaking ties with the church, he never looked back at his old name. (He changed it again to Malcolm Shabazz or Malik el-Shabazz, but "X" stuck in the minds of the public.)-->'''X:''' My father didn’t know his last name, my father got his name from his grandfather and he got it from his grandfather, who got it from the slave master. The ''real'' names of our ancestors were destroyed.\\'''Interviewer''': So you wont even tell me your father’s last name was--?\\'''X:''' I never acknowledge it whatsoever.* Likewise, when Cassius Clay converted to Islam and took the Muslim name Muhammad Ali, Ernie Terrell and Floyd Patterson continued to call him Cassius Clay to annoy him. In the ring, Ali taunted Terrell by shouting "What's my name?" en route to victory.* [[Series/ToshiieToMatsu Toshiie Maeda]], retainer of OdaNobunaga, had the birth name "Inuchiyo"; his colleagues often teased him by calling him "Inu" (i.e., "Dog") even after he came of age.* Jon Stewart, known for ''Series/TheDailyShow'', was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; he dropped his surname because of issues with his father. He has said that there are still people who "take great pleasure in calling me by my given name".* StanLee. He doesn't get mad if you call him Stanley Lieber, he just does his best to impress upon you that it's not his name anymore.* The same goes for [[Creator/BJWard Betty Jean Ward]], who prefers to go by her initials professionally.* Met fans like to heckle Atlanta Braves player Chipper Jones with his real name, Larry.* ComicBook writer Christopher Priest doesn't talk about why he changed his birth name of James Owsley. But we can. When he got divorced, the terms of the settlement were that his now-ex-wife was entitled to and would receive half the income "Jim Owsley" made. So Jim Owsley stopped working in comics, and Christopher Priest began.* Yahtzee of ''WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation'' fame doesn't like being called Ben by his fans because they come across as overly familiar despite being strangers. Matt, a friend of his, said in a podcast that only his parents call him Ben anymore.* Clive Staples Lewis, as a child, told his parents one day that he would only answer to 'Jack' - and stuck with that. He is now famous as Creator/CSLewis, with most people having no idea what the 'CS' stands for.** Clive James of Australia changed his name ''to'' Clive as a child, since Vivian [[HaveAGayOldTime turned into a girl's name]] once Vivien Leigh [[GoneWithTheWind became famous]].* Creator/PGWodehouse. His names are Pelham and Grenville, the surnames of two British [[UsefulNotes/TheMenOfDowningStreet prime ministers]]. His friends called him "Plum".* Inverted by [[Series/VicReevesBigNightOut Vic Reeves]], who goes from being Vic on set to Jim (Moir) off it and prefers people to call him that in RealLife (in reality, he's well enough known as Vic that many interviewers can't do it). Indeed, as Jim's father was also called Jim, he says that his family call him (his middle name) Rod, his friends call him Jim and his fans call him Vic. When he appeared with his wife on the UK version of ''I'm a Celebrity! Get Me Out of Here!'', it was a bit odd for fans to hear her referring to him as Jim when the voting lines and show presenters all called him Vic. You can also very occasionally hear Bob Mortimer accidentally call him Jim when they're performing, although he will immediately corrects himself.** Allegedly ElvisCostello is also like this, preferring to be called his birth name (Declan [=McManus=]) by family or in a non-performance context.* The vast majority of {{transsexual}}s, [[JustifiedTrope for very good reasons]].* The writers of [=OAFEnet=] prefer to be called by the names they use on the site, and even call each other those names, despite having worked together for years.* [[FurryFandom Furry]] performer Matthew Davis, aka 2 the Ranting Gryphon, says that even his own mom calls him 2.* SylvesterStallone, who prefers to be called 'Sly'.* BobHope was born Leslie Townes Hope. There are several different stories as to why he changed it, but one can imagine that being called "Hopelessly" and "Hopeless" as a child had something to do with it.* Glen Beaudin Kolbach, who played Malcolm Frink in ''SuperhumanSamuraiSyberSquad'', prefers to be called G, and has even his first name written as G in his passport, as he says that being called Glen feels like his father is in his room or someone is trying to collect a bill.* John, James, George and Richard...it doesn't have the same ring as [[Music/TheBeatles John, Paul, George and Ringo]], does it? Not to mention, EddieIzzard's joke about [[UsefulNotes/ThePope Pope]] names wouldn't work.** Papal names themselves began with another example of this trope -- a sixth-century priest named Mercurius was elected Pope, and decided that a name honoring a pagan god was not appropriate for the leader of the Christian church. He reigned under the name "John II".* Neurobiologist and scienceblogger [[http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula PZ Myers]] is almost a literal invocation of this trope -- PZ is short for Paul Zachary, but the only time anyone ever seems to call him "Paul" is when someone's slagging him on a creationist or evangelical site.* Legendary college basketball coach Bobby Knight hated it when Indiana University students called him "Bobby". He insisted on being called "Coach" or "Coach Knight". His stature and respect throughout the sport pretty much made this trope stick to everyone addressing him; even during his ESPN announcing tenure, his co-broadcasters would also refer to him exclusively as "Coach".* MarilynManson is, [[ViewersAreMorons in case you couldn't tell]], not his real name. Yet, even his CrazyAwesome dad, who Manson has described as "more of a rock star than myself" calls him Manson. For those who are wondering, he was born Brian Hugh Warner, his middle name coming from his father's first name. Originally all of the members of the band took stage names that were combinations of (female) sex symbols and serial killers as a commentary on the two things they felt America obsessed over the most, but none of the others is so well known as Marilyn due to him changing the band's name from "Marilyn Manson and The Spooky Kids" to just "Marilyn Manson", so most people never caught on.* Inverted by Paul Muni, whose birth name was Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund. His friends and close associates called him "Muni," an Austrian diminutive of Meshilem, which he had been called since birth. Strangers called him Mr. Muni. Only those who were trying to act like they were close (such as meddling executives) called him Paul.* Zigzagged with John Wayne. People either called him Duke or Marion (his birth name). If you called him "John", it took him a minute to figure out who the hell you were talking to.* WABC-TV reporter N.J. Burkett has the full name Newton Jones Burkett, but prefers to be addressed by his nickname.* Nobody -- except their immediate birth family and their co-star Margaret Dumont -- ever called [[MarxBrothers Ahdie, Leo or Julie Marx]] by their birth names.* Inverted with many married or middle-aged adults, who may often prefer to be called by their first names instead of Mr. or Mrs. (or Ms.) Something-Or-Other by everyone but their own children, especially by younger people; their reasoning is that they still want to think of themselves as young, and terms like "Mr." imply adulthood. Example: David Silverman, lead animator for ''TheSimpsons'', was once greeted as "Mr. Silverman" by [[AndThatLittleGirlWasMe a young boy]] at a film festival - and his response was "Please, call me Dave. Mr. Silverman is my ''father''."** Could also be an emerging generational preference, with referring to one another as Mr. or Mrs. [[ReportSiht Siht]] in social settings, particularly in cases when the speakers already know one another as opposed to being introduced or meeting for the first time, being seen as stodgy and old-fashioned.* [[Creator/PennAndTeller Teller]] was born under the name Raymond Joseph Teller, but has had it legally changed and now answers only to Teller. Of course, it isn't easy to get a man who never speaks [[note]]well, on stage, anyway[[/note]] to "answer" to ''anything''!* Over the years some people have gone by their middle names instead of the first names, dropping their first names entirely when being referred to, such as Stephen UsefulNotes/GroverCleveland, Clinton RichardDawkins, Thomas UsefulNotes/WoodrowWilson, and Willard Mitt Romney. No word on whether any of these examples get mad if referred to by their first or full names, but they still seem to prefer their middle ones.** Then there is Hiram Ulysses Grant, who became Ulysses S. Grant due to an error made during his entry to West Point.* Inverted by Creator/LaurenceOlivier. Even with his royal titles and knighthood, he apparently refused to carry on a conversation with anyone who wouldn't simply call him "Larry".* Lynn "Buck" Compton of ''Series/BandOfBrothers'' fame. As a child, he gave himself the nickname that would follow him through his military and legal careers, and while a kid beat up any of the other kids that called him Lynn.* ''{{Peanuts}}'' creator Charles M. Schulz obviously used his given name professionally, but among friends and relatives he preferred to be called Sparky, the nickname he was first given by an uncle two days after he was born.* {{Website/Youtube}} {{Bishonen}} Jason Sansome only ever goes by either his first name, or [=VeeOneEye=], the name of his channel. In the same vein, PJ Liguori (aka [=Kickthepj=]) hasn't told anyone what those initials stand for.** Jason has since had his surname changed to Viohni, in keeping with his channel name.* The children of sixties and seventies rock stars who were given, er, ''unique'' names tend either to accept them philosophically (Moon Unit Zappa, daughter of Frank, just grins and bears it.) Or else they change them at the very first opportunity. Call Duncan Jones "Zowie Bowie" and he might punch you. Similarly, Dandelion Pallenburg-Richards, daughter of Rolling Stone Keith and actress Anita, now expressly wishes to be called Angela. (despite having had a Rolling Stones song written for her). More offspring of the famous with silly names '''[[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/whatever-happened-to-baby-moon-unit-zappa-6169727.html here]]'''.* Whenever Andy Griffith visited his friend and ''[[Series/TheAndyGriffithShow Andy Griffith Show]]'' costar Creator/DonKnotts in his last days, he'd try to reach him by using his birth name Jesse, knowing how he'd disliked it.[[/folder]]